Leagues Cup bracket, schedule, results for 2026 competition between MLS and Liga MX originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
As North American soccer returns to action following the 2026 FIFA World Cup on home soil, league action pauses briefly as clubs from host nations United States, Canada, and Mexico all come together for a month-long clash.
The Leagues Cup gets under way for a sixth edition in 2026 — and fourth since the big rebrand in 2023 — as 36 clubs from across the three countries in Major League Soccer and Liga MX match up.
So far, MLS clubs have won each of the last three editions since the competition brought the two leagues together in the hopes of pushing out the U.S. Open Cup as the premier cup competition in the United States. Last time around, the Seattle Sounders triumphed to earn a place in the CONCACAF Champions Cup the following season.
The Sporting News brings you a look at the 2026 tournament bracket, league phase matchups, and results.
Leagues Cup format for 2026 tournament
For the 2026 competition, the Leagues Cup format will reflect something similar to that of the UEFA Champions League, having also adopted the Swiss Model by instituting a league phase and a knockout stage.
First, the teams will play three games in the league phase. The matchups were determined by a draw which used an eastern and western breakdown to minimize travel, and was seeded by overall combined table finish by putting the two league tables together.
Six-team regional groupings were made by selecting one team from each league (MLS and Liga MX) from each of the three tiers. From these regional groupings, each of the three Liga MX teams played each of the three MLS teams.
From there, they will be sorted by league (MLS and Liga MX) to ensure that an equal number of teams from each league advance to the knockout stage.
The top four in each table will advance to the quarterfinals. To begin the knockout phase, the four quarterfinal games will each feature one MLS team and one Liga MX team. The first-place MLS finisher will play the fourth-place Liga MX finisher, and so-on.
For continental qualification purposes, both finalists will earn a spot in the CONCACAF Champions Cup Round of 16, while the third-place finisher will secure a position in the CONCACAF Champions Cup first round.
Leagues Cup dates, rounds
League Phase, Matchweek 1
League Phase, Matchweek 2
League Phase, Matchweek 3
Final & third place match
Leagues Cup schedule, results
League phase
Columbus Crew3-1 Atlas
ScottsMiracle-Gro Field (Columbus, OH)
FC Cincinnati3-1 Pachuca
TQL Stadium (Cincinnati, OH)
Charlotte FC3-0 Pumas
Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, NC)
Minnesota United1-2 FC Juarez
Allianz Field (St. Paul, MN)
Tigres 1-1Real Salt Lake
Tigres won 6-5 on pens
America First Field (Sandy, UT)
Vancouver Whitecaps0-1 Atlante
BC Place (Vancouver, Canada)
Inter Miami4-2 Atletico San Luis
Nu Stadium (Miami, FL)
Monterrey 1-2Orlando City
Inter.co Stadium (Orlando, FL)
Nashville SC0-1 Club Leon
GEODIS Park (Nashville, TN)
FC Dallas2-0 Queretaro
Texas Health Stadium (Mansfield, TX)
Toluca 3-0Seattle Sounders
Estadio Nemesio Diez (Toluca, Mexico)
LAFC1-1 Chivas Guadalajara
LAFC won 5-4 on pens
BMO Stadium (Los Angeles, CA)
NYCFC2-0 Santos Laguna
Sports Illustrated Stadium (Harrison, NJ)
Cruz Azul 1-0Philadelphia Union
Subaru Park (Chester, PA)
Chicago Fire2-0 Necaxa
SeatGeek Stadium (Bridgeview, IL)
Austin FC2-0 Tijuana
Q2 Stadium (Austin, TX)
Club America 3-1San Diego FC
Estadio Banorte (Mexico City, Mexico)
Portland Timbers5-2 Puebla
Providence Park (Portland, OR)
Charlotte FC 2-0 Atlas
Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, NC)
Columbus Crew 2-1 Pachuca
ScottsMiracle-Gro Field (Columbus, OH)
FC Cincinnati 2-0 Pumas
TQL Stadium (Cincinnati, OH)
Tigres 0-0 Minnesota United
Tigres won 4-2 on pens
Allianz Field (St. Paul, MN)
Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Juarez
BC Place (Vancouver, Canada)
Orlando City vs. Club Leon
Inter.co Stadium (Orlando, FL)
Inter Miami vs. Monterrey
Nu Stadium (Miami, FL)
Chivas Guadalajara vs. FC Dallas
PayPal Park (San Jose, CA)
Real Salt Lake vs. Atlante
America First Field (Sandy, UT)
BMO Stadium (Los Angeles, CA)
Seattle Sounders vs. Queretaro
Lumen Field (Seattle, WA)
Sports Illustrated Stadium (Harrison, NJ)
Philadelphia Union vs. Necaxa
Subaru Park (Chester, PA)
Chicago Fire vs. Santos Laguna
SeatGeek Stadium (Bridgeview, IL)
Nashville SC vs. Atletico San Luis
GEODIS Park (Nashville, TN)
Austin FC vs. Puebla
Q2 Stadium (Austin, TX)
San Diego FC vs. Tijuana
Snapdragon Stadium (San Diego, CA)
Club America vs. Portland Timbers
Providence Park (Portland, OR)
Columbus Crew vs. Pumas
ScottsMiracle-Gro Field (Columbus, OH)
Charlotte FC vs. Pachuca
Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, NC)
FC Cincinnati vs. Atlas
TQL Stadium (Cincinnati, OH)
Minnesota United vs. Atlante
Allianz Field (St. Paul, MN)
Real Salt Lake vs. Juarez
America First Field (Sandy, UT)
Tigres vs. Vancouver Whitecaps
Estadio Universitario (Nuevo Leon, Mexico)
Orlando City vs. Atletico San Luis
Inter.co Stadium (Orlando, FL)
Inter Miami vs. Club Leon
Nu Stadium (Miami, FL)
Monterrey vs. Nashville SC
GEODIS Park (Nashville, TN)
Toluca vs. FC Dallas
Estadio Nemesio Diaz (Toluca, Mexico)
San Diego FC vs. Puebla
Snapdragon Stadium (San Diego, CA)
BMO Stadium (Los Angeles, CA)
Seattle Sounders vs. Chivas Guadalajara
Lumen Field (Seattle, WA)
Philadelphia Union vs. Santos Laguna
Subaru Park (Chester, PA)
Sports Illustrated Stadium (Harrison, NJ)
Club America vs. Austin FC
Q2 Stadium (Austin, TX)
Cruz Azul vs. Chicago Fire
SeatGeek Stadium (Bridgeview, IL)
Portland Timbers vs. Tijuana
Providence Park (Portland, OR)
Knockout stage
MLS #1 vs. Liga MX #4
MLS #2 vs. Liga MX #3
Liga MX #2 vs. MLS #3
Liga MX #1 vs. MLS #4
Semifinal loser vs. Semifinal loser
Semifinal winner vs. Semifinal winner
Source: Yahoo Entertainment
